>Back from Hiatus & More…

>My apologies for the pathetic maintenance of this site over the past few weeks. For those that have sent me e-mails, thanks for the kick in the pants. Onto news everyone knows by now…

– The RedHawks finished the CCHA regular season in third place. Not too shabby for a “rebuilding” year, but well below where this team could have finished. Miami saw a rough second half of the season. The silver lining here…Miami gets a first round bye in the CCHA tournament. As the RedHawks await their second round opponent, one has to ponder if this team still gets into the NCAA Frozen Four tourny, without winning the Mason Cup later this month. I say yes, but some have speculated that Miami will be the best team left OUT of this year’s field. Miami’s current PWI is at 11, but only time will tell. Expect a Miami/Northern Michigan matchup in round two of the CCHA tournament. College Hockey News has a CCHA bracket here.

– Miami finishes the regular season ranked 8th in the latest USCHO poll.

– With two goals in Saturday’s 7-5 Miami win over Ohio State, senior forward Justin Mercier becomes the 43rd player to join Miami’s 100-point club, however, Mercier also has a title that is all his own. The Erie, Pennsylvania native is the only player in school history with 100 career points and career wins. Certainly a big accomplishment.

– And some sad news to pass along, to those that haven’t heard. Notre Dame play-by-play announcer Mike Lockert passed away in his sleep early Friday morning. As a veteran of radio and sports announcing, Lockert also served as the media relations director for the South Bend River Hawks, the Arizona Diamondbacks Single-A affiliate. What’s even more remarkable, is that Mike was born in of all places, Los Angeles, California. Who knew he’d wind up as the Voice of the Fighting Irish for the past seven seasons? Mike Lockert was 43.